


Adventures in Babysitting

by combefemme



Category: Young Avengers
Genre: F/M, Prompt Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-10
Updated: 2014-06-10
Packaged: 2018-02-04 02:56:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1763505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/combefemme/pseuds/combefemme
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tommy and Kate babysit.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Adventures in Babysitting

**Author's Note:**

> For the prompt: tommy & kate with children (their children, children they've rescued, whoever the children are is up to you) from tumblr user tedaltmans

"Suze, they'll be fine," Kate says, ushering her sister towards the door. "Brad's got a car waiting for you downstairs."

"I know, I know," Susan replies, walking backwards in front of Kate. "It's just--"

"You haven't left the baby yet, I know," Kate cuts her off. "But he's almost two months old, Suze. It's time. Besides, Tommy and I are here."

"I know," Susan says again. "And I know Leah adores you but she's only met Tommy a couple of times and now with the baby I just... Is he even any good with kids?"

"Tommy's great with kids," Kate replies automatically. She's just trying to placate her sister. In all honesty she has no idea how Tommy is with kids. He got along with Molly Hayes really well but there's a big difference between a twelve year old and a two year old, not to mention the baby.

"You're sure?" Susan asks as Kate finally gets her over the threshold.

"Yes, I'm sure," Kate soothes. "It's just for a few hours. They'll still be here when you get back, I promise."

Susan sighs. "Okay. Thanks for this."

"Anytime," Kate promises, sincerely hoping her sister doesn't take her up on it if she's always going to freak out like this.

When Susan is finally gone (and Kate has resisted the urge to bang her head against a wall) Kate heads down the hall toward the playroom where she left Tommy and Leah. She pokes her head into the nursery on the but Charlie is sleeping soundly. She leans over the crib and smiles fondly down at him.

Kate will be the first to admit that she's never been a particularly child-oriented person, but ever since Susan and Brad started a family she can't deny that the idea has gotten more appealing. She hasn't mentioned it to Tommy, of course -- no matter how much her imagined future children might resemble him. She has a feeling it might freak him out. They've been together over a year but they've never talked about the future in any concrete terms. Stability just isn't Tommy's thing, Kate figures. He's not the type to plan ahead.

She's brought out of her reverie by the sound of laughter from the next room, a high-pitched giggle as Leah squeals in delight. Kate pokes her head into the playroom to find Tommy sitting cross-legged on the floor, Leah in his lap. She's holding a picture book in her chubby little hands, frantically waving it up and down.

"'Gain! 'Gain!" she cries and Tommy laughs, taking the book from her.

"Okay, one more time," Tommy agrees as he opens it to the first page. Leah settles back into his chest and he places the book in her lap to read over her shoulder. Somthing in Kate melts at the sight.

It's some silly kids' book about woodland creatures that Kate isn't entirely sure even has a plot but Tommy more than makes up for it, his tone rising and falling as he reads and this voice changing for each character. There's an owl with a melodic trill, a bear with a gruff tenor, and a mouse with a high-pitched squeak. Leah claps her hands joyfully at each new voice.

Kate watches from the doorway and claps when he gets to the end. Tommy's head snaps up and his ears turn bright red when he sees her. She smiles but before she has a chance to comment Leah's grabbed the book and started her insistent waving again.

"'Gain! 'Gain!" she demands.

Tommy laughs. "We just read it four times."

"I think it's time for bed, sweetie," Kate says.

"No!" Leah replies -- the only word she can properly pronounce. "No, Tee Kay! Unca Mee 'gain!"

Kate raises an eyebrow at her boyfriend. "'Uncle Tommy'?"

Tommy's eyes widen. "Is that what she's saying?"

Kate nods as she comes over to lift Leah out of Tommy's lap and settles her against her hip. Leah has yet to relinquish her grip on the book. Tommy stands, too, digging his hands into his pockets. It's something he's taken to doing when he doesn't know what to do with his hands, which is most times.

"How does this sound," Kate says to the toddler. "We get you all cozy in bed and Uncle Tommy will read you the story one more time, okay?"

"Unca Mee 'gain," Leah agrees with a yawn and Kate knows that she won't make it all the way through another story.

She's proven right ten minutes later when Tommy joins her on the couch.

"Passed out by page three," he tells her.

Kate laughs and leans into him, his arm wrapping around her shoulders. "You're really good with her... Uncle Tommy."

"I told her to call me Tommy," he replies. "I had no idea that's what she was saying."

Kate shrugs. "She likes you."

"Well she's got good taste," Tommy grins. "What is it that she calls you?"

"'Tee Kay'," Kate replies. "It's the closest she can get to Auntie Kate."

They lapse into silence after that, Tommy playing with the hem of Kate's shirtsleave because some part of him is always fidgeting. It doesn't bother Kate. Just the opposite, actually. When they'd first started dating Tommy had made an effort to always sit still out of some misguided attempt to not be annoying. He'd been stiff and that had annoyed Kate more than anything. Of course, when he'd started to loosen up he'd been so worried he was going to mess this up somehow that he'd been absolutely humming with nervous energy. Now, though, he's completely still but for those absentminded fingers and Kate loves it because it means he's comfortable.

Kate's not sure when she got so fluent in the subtle language that is Tommy Shepherd, but she'd be lying if she said she doesn't love that, too.

"So, how'd you get so good with kids?" Kate asks after a moment.

"My mom used to run a daycare out of our house," he tells her. "Till I was about fourteen and my powers kicked in. A bunch of the parents weren't so happy about their kids hanging out with a mutant. My mom lost so much business she had to shut down."

"Oh," is all Kate says. She barely even thinks of Tommy and Billy as mutants, though she realizes that's pretty ridiculous given their lineage. She just spends so much time around super powered people these days that she's stopped considering where the powers come from.

Before she gets the chance to ask the question that's really burning a hole in her brain, though, the baby moniter on the table lets them know that Charlie is awake and Kate goes to see to him. After a quick diaper change she brings him out into the living room.

"Hold him for a sec while I heat up a bottle?" she says, handing him to Tommy.

When she gets back to the couch she fully expects Tommy to pass the baby back to her but instead he just reaches for the bottle. She gives it to him and then sits next to him on the couch, cross-legged so she can face him.

"Hungry little thing," Tommy says as Charlies takes the bottle between his lips and starts sucking. And then, in a voice verging on baby-talk, "You'd think you never get fed, huh, bud?"

Kate watches them with a smile. Tommy looks good with a baby in his arms and that thought doesn't scare her as much as she thinks it should.

Before she can stop herself she blurts out, "Do you ever think about having kids?"

Tommy freezes, almost inperceptibly, but Kate can read him well enough to tell.

"Uh," he stutters, not meeting her eyes. "I always figured it didn't matter."

"Why wouldn't it matter?" she asks.

Tommy shrugs. "Because you don't want kids, right?"

Kate picks at a loose thread in the couch. "I don't know. Maybe."

Now Tommy does look at her. "Really?"

"I never used to think so," she replies. "But lately I've been thinking maybe."

"What changed your mind?" he asks.

"Well, these guys mostly," she says, giving Charlie's foot a gentle shake. "But also you, I guess."

Tommy's brows knit in. "Me? What did I do?"

"Nothing really," she replies. "But I guess I just never really wanted that until I had somebody that I wanted it with."

Tommy's face softens at that and the corners of his mouth perk up. "Oh."

"You do want kids, don't you?" Kate asks then.

Tommy looks down at the baby cradled in the bend of his elbow and nods. "Yeah."

"And you were gonna give that up for me?"

He sighs. "I love you, Kate. Right now, I just wanna be with you."

"You shouldn't have to give up the things you want because of me, though," she tells him.

Tommy shrugs. "Look, I'm not saying it wouldn't've been an issue someday, but I was at least willing to try."

Kate leans forward at that, wrapping her arms around him and dropping her head onto his shoulder. "I love you, too, y'know."

Tommy chuckles. "Of course you do. How could you not?"

"Cocky," Kate laughs.

"You knew what you were getting into," he jokes. "So, does this mean that you're actually figuring on being with me long enough for all this family talk to matter?"

Kate lets her eyes drop closed and smiles. "That's the plan."


End file.
